MacintoshPi bypasses the X.org manager and background tasks are reduced to a bare minimum (“the full resources of Raspberry Pi can be used,” Jaromaz enthuses). Getting the packages compiled and installed takes about two hours but the results are stunning. If you use the full legacy version of Raspberry Pi OS, you'd need to switch to the command line or set system start to CLI, but the process is neatly explained on Jaromaz's GitHub. To get MacintoshPi up and running, you simply need to compile and run a single script atop the legacy version of Raspberry Pi OS Lite. It can mimic a Commodore 128 and Commodore PET too. For good measure, he ended up including a dual-boot option that supports the Commodore emulator. “It contains minimal and imperceptible latency and joysticks can be connected directly to the Raspberry Pi's GPIO, eliminating the additional latency of the USB interface.” It became a model for how Jaromaz wanted MacintoshPi to work. “Randy optimised it for Raspberry Pi and omitted Linux entirely, hence the bare-metal,” says Jaromaz, adding that he wanted to follow the same path. Created by Randy Rossi and based on another Commodore 64 emulator called VICE, BMC64 offers true 50Hz/60Hz smooth scrolling and low latency between input and video/audio. “ Raspberry Pi 3B+ is the best board for BMC64 – the fastest, low-level, bare-metal Commodore 64 emulator for Raspberry Pi,” he explains. How a single PC vendor can help you get ahead Transforming the employee experience for a hybrid work world That's because he was able to draw inspiration from another project called BMC64. “Right from the beginning, the goal was Raspberry Pi 3B+,” Jaromaz says. To install it, users need either a Raspberry Pi 2, Raspberry Pi 3 or Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W (it won't work on the original model and it's not compatible with Raspberry Pi 4 Model B at the moment). It also uses the open-source SheepShaver emulator that dates back to 1998 to run Mac OS 9, making for a rather versatile retro Macintosh package. MacintoshPi builds on top of the Basilisk II emulator, allowing Mac OS 7 and 8 to run. What's more, it's already attracting a lot of attention. Some six years on and it's finally available. “Apple also requires self-made software to be signed once a week which makes it very difficult to use.” The MacintoshPi project duly began. When he bought a Macintosh Classic II case on eBay, though, he discovered that the iPad mini's screen was too small, while standard iPads were too large and wouldn't fit in the case. Álvarez”) and found that it worked on his iPad mini. He then compiled Basilisk II in Xcode on his MacBook (“a version of the macemu/iOS branch by user Jesús A. “I believed a system emulated on a modern ARM board would successfully replace the original hardware and create a solution.” Introducing MacintoshPiĪt first, Jaromaz looked to run the early Macintosh emulator collection Mini vMac on an iPad before finding that it didn't allow the use of internet resources and handled the keyboard incorrectly. “But as a software, not hardware specialist, I didn't want to buy older and expensive hardware only to worry that it would have a short lifespan,” he explains. He dreamed of running the operating system with the original Macintosh Classic case. “It's so friendly, intuitive, elegant and easy to use,” Jaromaz says. It was then that he fell in love with Mac OS 7.5.5. This gave me the chance to explore the most interesting Mac OS titles retroactively.” “I was surprised at how many programs and games worked seamlessly with the emulator and I knew many of them from the PC I owned in my youth, although some were brand new to me. Shortly after that, I purchased my first MacBook Pro with Retina screen and I also installed the Basilisk II emulator to begin serious, long tests of Mac OS 7.5.5. “The hackintosh convinced me of the Apple system itself – its attention to detail, cleanliness and visual perfection. “In 2015, I built a hackintosh with OS X Yosemite for testing purposes because I'd seen the Retina screens in Polish Apple Reseller showrooms and the resolution and readability of the fonts fascinated me,” Jaromaz explains. It was a while before he reacquainted himself with Macs, however.
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